Biology

Voltorb is a spherical Pokémon that resembles a Poké Ball with eyes and minus the button. The top half is red, while the bottom half is white. Because of its resemblance to Poké Balls, it is thought that it was created when one was exposed to an energy pulse. This is supported by the fact that its components do not occur naturally. Voltorb is generally found in power plants and other areas with electric fields. It was first discovered in the plant where modern Poké Balls were invented. It has a volatile temperament and will explode if bumped or agitated.

In the anime

In the main series

Major appearances

Multiple Voltorb appeared in So Near, Yet So Farfetch'd. Team Rocket received them from Keith, thinking they were Poké Balls with rare Pokémon in them, as well as their Arbok, Lickitung, and Weezing. When Team Rocket found out they were not, the Voltorb started to explode in their balloon. They dumped most of the Voltorb on the thief, prompting him to quit his crime spree, but a single Voltorb sent them blasting off.

In the TCG

In the TFG

Game data

NPC appearances

Pokémon Pinball: Three Voltorb appear on the Red Table and give the player points when hit. When Catch'em Mode is activated, they also reveal the silhouette of the Pokémon attempting to be captured upon being hit.

Pokémon: Magikarp Jump: A Voltorb may appear as part of the "Is It Treasure?" event, where it will explode (and thereby force the player's Magikarp to retire).

Trivia

In the English and European versions of Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, a game called Voltorb Flip is introduced in place of slot machines. The game is similar to Minesweeper, and largely focuses on flipping over cards to multiply the coins currently earned. Some cards, however, have Voltorb on them which will cause the player to lose coins when flipped.

Origin

It seems to be based upon the concept of a living Poké Ball (with its Shiny coloration possibly being based on a Great Ball). The design concept may be inheritance from the time when the franchise was known as Capsule Monsters, as early artworks show Poké Balls without the button in the middle.

The idea of them being mistaken for the standard Item Balls is similar to a mimic, a monster archetype commonly found in RPGs.

Given its tendency to explode, it could also be based on a bomb. Its unpredictable tendency to explode, as well as its shape and name, may be a reference to ball lightning.

Name origin

Voltorb is a combination of volt and orb.

Biriridama may be a combination of ビリビリ biribiri (sound of electric shock) and 玉 tama (sphere).